Violet Bidwill WolfnerViolet Fults Bidwill Wolfner (néeViolet Fults; January 10, 1900 – January 29, 1962) was the owner of the Chicago / St. LouisCardinals of the National Football League (NFL) for over 14 years, from 1947 until her death in early 1962. She inherited the team in April 1947, following the death of her husband Charles Bidwill Sr., who purchased the team in 1933. She was the first woman to become principal owner of an NFL team.
Charles BidwillCharles W. "Charley" Bidwill Sr. (September 16, 1895 – April 19, 1947) was an American businessman. He was the owner of the Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He owned the team for 14 seasons, the NFL campaigns running from 1933 through 1946. Bidwill was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967. Early lifeBidwill was the son of Chicago 9th Ward Alderman Joseph Edward Bidwill and Mary Anne Sullivan.
Arizona CardinalsNFL team in Glendale, ArizonaGeneral informationFounded1898; 128 years ago (1898)StadiumState Farm StadiumGlendale, ArizonaHeadquarteredTempe, ArizonaColorsCardinal red, white, black, grey MascotBig RedWebsiteazcardinals.comPersonnelOwnerMichael BidwillGeneral managerMonti OssenfortHead coachMike LaFleurNicknamesThe CardsThe RedbirdsThe Big RedThe Football Cardinals (during St. Louis tenure, 1960–1987)The GridbirdsBirdgang/Red Sea (fanbase)Team historyMorgan Athletic Club (1898)Racine Normals (1899–1900)Racine (Street) Cardinals (1901–1905, 1913–1917, 1919–1921) Suspended operations (1906–1912, 1918)Chicago Cardinals (1922–1943, 1945–1959) Card-Pitt (1944)St. Louis Cardinals (1960–1987)Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993)Arizona Cardinals (1994–present)Home fieldsNormal Park (1920–1921, 1926–1928)Comiskey Park (1922–1925, 1929–1930, 1939–1959)Wrigley Field (1931–1938)Busch Stadium (1960–1965)Busch Memorial Stadium (1966–1987)Sun Devil Stadium (1988–2005)State Farm Stadium (2006–present)Temporary stadiums1944 due to shortage of players during World War II (temporary merger with Pittsburgh Steelers):Forbes Field (three games)1959 before relocation to St. Louis:Soldier Field (four games)Metropolitan Stadium (two games)League / conference affiliationsIndependent (1898–1906, 1913–1919)National Football League (1920–present) Western Division (1933–1949)American Conference (1950–1952)Eastern Conference (1953–1969) Century Division (1967–1969)National Football Conference (1970–present)NFC East (1970–2001)NFC West (2002–present)ChampionshipsLeague championships: 2NFL championships (pre-1970 AFL–NFL merger) (2)1925, 1947Conference championships: 1NFC:2008Division championships: 7NFL Western:1947, 1948NFC East:1974, 1975NFC West:2008, 2009, 2015Playoff appearances (11)NFL:1947, 1948, 1974, 1975, 1982, 1998, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2015, 2021OwnersChris O'Brien (1898–1929)David Jones (1929–1933)Charles Bidwill (1933–1947)Violet Bidwill Wolfner (1947–1962)Charles Bidwill Jr. and Bill Bidwill (1962–1972)Bill Bidwill (1972–2019)Michael Bidwill (2019–present)The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
1972 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) seasonThe 1972 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 53rd year with the National Football League and thirteenth in St. Louis. On September 2, Bill Bidwill purchased the stock of his brother Charles "Stormy" Bidwill to become sole owner of the Cardinals. The adopted sons of Charles and Violet Bidwill, the two had co-owned the team since their mother's death in January 1962.
Charles Bidwill Jr.Charles W. "Stormy" Bidwill Jr. (June 9, 1928 – November 3, 2025) was an American businessman who was the president of the now defunct Sportsman's Park horse track in Cicero, Illinois, from 1967 to 1995, and co-owner of the National Football League (NFL)'s Chicago and St. Louis Cardinals franchise with his younger brother, Bill Bidwill, from 1962 to 1972.
1962 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) seasonThe 1962St. Louis Cardinals season marked the team's 43rd year with the National Football League (NFL) and their third season in St. Louis. The team finished with a record of 4 wins, 9 losses, and 1 tie — placing them 6th in the 7-team Eastern Conference. This was the 14th consecutive year that the Cardinals failed to make the NFL playoffs.
Chicago CardinalsGeneral informationFounded1898Folded1959HeadquarteredChicago, IllinoisColorsCardinal red, white, blackPersonnelOwnersChris O'Brien (1898–1929)David Jones (1929–1932)Charles Bidwill (1932–1947)Violet Bidwill (1947–1961)Team historyMorgan Athletic Club (1898)Racine Normals (1899–1900)Racine (Street) Cardinals (1901–1905, 1913–1917, 1919–1921) Suspended operations (1906–1912, 1918)Chicago Cardinals (1922–1959) Card-Pitt (1944)St. Louis Cardinals (1960–1987)Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993)Arizona Cardinals (1994–present)Home fieldsNormal Park (1900–1921, 1926–1928)Comiskey Park (1922–1925, 1929–1930, 1940–1958)Wrigley Field (1931–1939)Soldier Field (1959, 4 games)Metropolitan Stadium (1959, 2 games)League / conference affiliationsNational Football League (1920–1959) Western Division (1933–1949)American Conference (1950–1952)Eastern Conference (1953–1959)ChampionshipsLeague championships: 2NFL championships (pre-1970 AFL–NFL merger) (2)1925, 1947Division championships: 2NFL West:1947, 1948Playoff appearances (2)NFL:1947, 1948The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons.
Georgetown Preparatory SchoolGeorgetown Preparatory School (also known as Georgetown Prep, GP, GPrep or The Yard) is a Jesuit college-preparatory school in North Bethesda, Maryland for boys in ninth through twelfth grade. It has a 93-acre (380,000 square meters) campus which are used for student life (as 7 other acres of the golf coursed were leased to an apartment complex on campus).
Georgetown UniversityGeorgetown University is a private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic institution of higher education in the United States, the oldest university in Washington, D.C., and the nation's first federally chartered university. The university has eleven undergraduate and graduate schools.National Football LeagueThe National Football League (NFL) is a professionalAmerican football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and the highest professional level of American football in the world.
St. LouisSt. Louis (officially the City of St. Louis) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while its metropolitan area, which extends into Illinois, had an estimated population of over 2.8 million. It is the largest metropolitan area in Missouri and the second-largest in Illinois.
United States NavyMaritime service branch of the U.S. militaryMilitary unitThe United States Navy (USN) is the maritimeservice branch of the United States Armed Forces and is designated as the navy of the United States in the Constitution. With 290 combat vessels, it is the world's second largest navy, behind the People's Liberation Army Navy, and by far the largest by displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.